Defending Champion Amherst Downs Pittsfield
AMHERST, Mass. — Pittsfield lost to defending state finalists Amherst, 55-35, on the road in its season opener.
Jill Ritrosky was held to 10 points for the Generals (0-1) as Brianna Leonard and Forbasaw Nkamebo each had game-highs with 15 points to lead the Hurricanes, who were last season's Western Massachusetts Division I Champions.
Amherst faught off a fiesty Pittsifeld team that played well early. Ultimately, the Hurricanes used their speed in the third quarter to extend its eight-point advantage to 20.
"Amherst has six players that can run the floor and know how to play basketball," Generals head coach Joe Racicot said. "When they need to make a play someone of those six steps up."
A 20-point loss in its season opener could be a sign that a team is in for a long season. One Hurricane player suggests that Pittsfield played better than the scoreboard indicates.
"They were a really good team," Nkamebo said of the Generals in an interview with the Daily Hampshire Gazette. "They are quick and they run. In the first half, we were playing too slow and let them catch up. We came out in the second half and pushed the ball up the floor better. We wanted to push each other and keep running."